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Working in the sector

Offender learning - a career of choice

The Coates Review put prison education in the spotlight. It's a great time to be considering a career within offender learning which offers a range of opportunities.

Find out more about teaching in a prison

Teach Inside is an online resource, created by those already working in prison education to entice others to do so! The Raising the Bar videos (on the right) form part of this resource, they show how teaching in prison while challenging can be very worthwhile.

To access the module, register for free with Foundation Online Learning, and you will find Teach Inside within the Teaching and Learning section.

They highlight the benefits of learning not only to themselves but also their institutions.

Your really can make a difference

Cyril Derriviere spent many years in prison before he changed his life through education. Cyril is now a QTLS qualified teacher working in London teaching brick laying and construction in London with young people who have emotional and behavioural difficulties. Watch the video to learn more about how SET membership (see Professional Development Opportunities below) and gaining QTLS has changed his life.

Are you studying to become a teacher?

Request a placement in prison education

It could lead to a rewarding career:

"The placement allowed me to experience teaching in a completely different environment and made me aware that a career in teaching does not mean solely teaching in a school. I now teach in the offender learning environment and if I had not undertaken a placement this is not a route that I would have known existed."

Teacher, Weston College.

Look for job opportunities

There are many routes into prison education for new and existing teachers as well as people direct from industry.

Discover how teaching in prison is different?

The University and College Union (UCU) represent educators working in prisons.Their short film explores the unique challenges of teaching in a prison environment, the similarities with teachers in other contexts and why teachers choose offender learning.

Professional Development Opportunites

Learn about SET membership

"SET membership is valuable to me as a professional tutor and manager in the Offender Learning Sector as it enables me to keep up to date in new developments across the sector, feel part of a larger organisation and also enables me to share new ideas and practices with my tutor team." Steph Taylor, College Leader, HMP Dovegate (Serco)

Join events and courses

On our News and Events page we highlight events and courses relevant to the sector.

Explore our resources

We have a wide variety of resources that can help you to develop your practice. You'll find resources relevant to the web page you're exploring at the bottom of that page.

The materials below were chosen to help you not only to be aware of the context of working in the justice sector but also helping you overcome some of the challenges. You can request printed copies of a wide variety of free offender learning resources using this order form.